The US Marine Corps has grounded all 54 of its amphibious combat vehicles over concerns with a faulty towing mechanism.
All waterborne operations are on hold until the issue is resolved, Marine Corps spokesman Maj. Jim Stenger said on Friday.
He added that the pause in operation had been ordered “out of an abundance of caution,”
As explained, Marines recently reported problems with activating the mechanism, with the system also somehow detaching. The service is now working on identifying and fixing the issue.
This is the first pause in operations for the new eight-wheeled ACV, which was first delivered by BAE Systems in October 2020 as a replacement for the amphibious assault vehicle (AAV). The service lost an AAV and eight marines and one sailor when an AAV sank off the coast of San Clemente Island on July 30, 2020. The incident resulted in a nine-month suspension of operations for the fleet of vehicles.
Compared to the AAV, the ACV will provide superior landward maneuverability and mobility, while providing protection similar to the mine-resistant ambush protected vehicle. The ACV has a six-cylinder, 690 horsepower engine, making it capable of land speeds exceeding 55 mph. It’s also designed to provide Marines the flexibility to address additional mission roles and future technologies through its modular design.
